Down right disgusting. No wait, beyond disgusting, it was disgusting, disturbing and well plain old stupid. Not to mention highly unnecessary. This is what was going through my mind when I was doing research for an article I recently wrote regarding puppy mills. I went on many activist sites, in order to find definitions and the likes so I could use them in my article. What I found on these sites made me not only emotionally upset but to a certain degree also physically upset. I understand very well that there is a problem regarding cruelty towards animals in the world and that in Quebec, due to a utter lack of laws, the problem is rather large.
I also understand that something has to be done to help these animals and to stop cruelty from happening in the first place. I also feel the need to help and I offer my full support to the people who are fighting this battle. However, I don’t support the techniques that these activist groups are using in order to gain support and spread the word.
On one of the sites I visited, there were little features about dogs that needed help. One of the stories was about a boxer named Bruno who was a puppy mill dog. The feature about Bruno was a video about how he had been abandoned and that the local SPCA did everything they could to help, but in the end the SPCA officials had to make the decision to put Bruno down. It wasn’t the story that upset me. It was the video that went along with it. The video is essentially the site showing Bruno being euthanized. Isn’t this a little bit extremist?
Tell the story of Bruno, say that due to a lack of funds and nobody wanting him, he had to be put to sleep, but come on! Do you really have to show the dog in his final moments?
People can understand the gravity of the story and deicide to help without having to see the life leave Bruno as his body goes limp in the technician’s arms. That, ladies and gentlemen, is sensationalism at its very best! Videos and other material like this upset people needlessly. Don’t try to tell me it doesn’t. I’m the daughter of two veterinarians and the granddaughter of a woman who runs an animal shelter. I have seen my fair share of animals that are sick and being put down. I have been the person who has to hold the animal as it dies. I’m no stranger to such sights and yet that video upset me so much that over eight hours later when I spoke to my mom, I was still reeling from seeing it.
Posting such material on your website, even if you provide a disclaimer like this particular group did, doesn’t make the video any less disturbing, so just don’t do it!
